Recommendation to Telltale Developers: DON'T kill off Clementine.
While I can't control the outcome of what the developers decide, if you're a developer and you're reading this, it would be a huge mistake to kill off Clementine. At least make it so that it is determinable by choices if she dies or not if you do have to make a scene where she dies. But if you have to do any of that please make her surviving be the default. Please. Many of the stories you've made have choices that do have consequences but in the end the result ends up being the same, until the next season. We want Clementine to live.
This is why she shouldn't be killed off: Me and anyone else who enjoys Telltale's the Walking Dead knows that there have been very few happy endings. Clementine is one of the most iconic characters to come from the gaming industry in years. Killing her off would essentially be killing off your company. It would turn me and many others off Telltale games as a whole. There are enough sad endings, just please make this one good. Sad and depressing endings can be good, but in this case we do not want Clementine to be killed off.
It would also be very cliché to have Clem die in the end. Which goes into one of the reasons why it would turn me and many others off of Telltale. I'm not saying this just because I like the character a lot. That's only one reason. It would be disastrous to the industry as I said, because not only are spinoffs marketed towards iconic characters such as Clementine in comics, gaming, etc. But we know you sell merchandise through Skybound and we like it. If you kill off Clementine, people are not going to buy your merch. Take this from a fellow developer who knows a little about marketing.
In conclusion, and I know I sound like a broken record, but please don't kill her off. I like your company and I like her as a character, she's probably my favorite videogame character next to a couple others, and I would like to see some spinoffs or even continuations with her involved. I love the action figures as well, keep them up. People also strive off of the fan continuations involving her, including me, as I have a community based game which includes Clementine as a playable character. Killing her off would be devastating to our community.
Thank you for your hard work in developing such engrossing and realistic stories, please keep it up and keep Clem alive while you're at it. ^_^
-Mark, A.K.A. ClemmyRaisedRightly-
Comments
But maybe she can still be the mascot of the company, even if she dies.
Clementine surviving? I'd like that. I feel like the franchise as a whole is in some sort of existential crisis due to repeated patterns in both character-arcs and overall storylines. Even TFS is a little bit guilty of it.
So ... don't just go full circle. Break that circle, instead.
Remember Telltale, pitchforks and torches...
I definitely want Clementine to live, sad endings so far have been good but now that it is the final season it would be extremely unsatisfying to have our beloved character die. If she lives in the end with some kind of a happy ending it'll be a pleasing ending, otherwise I won't be able to get my head off of Clem's death.
The only way I would like Clem's death is if she reunited with Lee in afterlife lol, but obviously that's unlikely to happen.
Just FYI, we try to reserve the "Talk with Telltale" and "Staff AMA" thread tags for threads created by Telltale Staff members.
Telltale decided the ending to this game before they even made the rest of the episodes. Only time will tell what happens to her
That would probably be like the best ending. Clem dying and then she sees Lee (and possibly everyone else she lost) in Heaven. And then Lee greets her with a "Hey SweetPea". Omg, that would be like the best ending and a great way to end off Clem's story.
Lee protected her and Clem protected AJ till the end. Full circle
You could easily put your theory or its explanation in many other topics of this subject and not be creating another topic of these, do not you think?
I think the ending will be both AJ and Clementine getting bit. AJ has to shoot Clementine in the head, then he saves the last bullet for himself and shoots himself in the head.
R.I.P. last season
It's gonna be so dull if Clem lives and walks off into the unknown again. Say Clem lives the end of season four.. What makes that ending different from the others before it? How does this stand out enough to stand the test of time? If folks leave that's their prerogative.
I think it would be more cliched to keep her alive. This is coming from someone who loves how strong Clem's become over the seasons.
I think that TWD universe - or heck, any stories involving zombies - have a sort of nihilism to them, and it makes sense that the conclusion would be bittersweet, with emphasis on the bitter part. While I was pleasantly surprised by ANF's happy ending, TWD universe is not a happy place. Being alive is almost a metaphor for purgatory. You walk among the dead and you suffer losses and the cycle keeps repeating. Frankly speaking, the happy ending of ANF was a disservice to TWD's theme.
Again, don't get me wrong - I love, love Clementine - but I subscribe to the school of storytelling that you should make your characters suffer, no matter how much you like them, in order to show the true character (or nature) within them. As Kurt Vonnegut said, "Be a sadist. No matter how sweet and innocent your leading characters, make awful things happen to them - in order that the reader may see what they are made of." And besides, Clementine deserves to rest, not go on living the perpetual lie that things are going to get better. They're not, as evident from these four seasons. She's just going to lose more people and continue to suffer.
Above all, keeping a character alive just to sell merch is an insult to not just Clem, but storytelling itself. We have enough studios out there sacrificing good story for making a profit, milking franchises forever just so they could sell another toy. Don't fall to the temptation of sacrificing good art for petty cash.
Right. I think Clem will die \ almost die for save AJ's life
Telltale every time they see a thread like this:
As an Author, I can tell you that modern reasoning such as that of Kurt Vonnegut does not hold true. That's why only one of his works are very widely known (Breakfast of Champions). Take the Lord of the Rings as an example. It's one of the most popular stories in human history, yet characters rarely die in it. It would be a horrible ending to have Clementine die, and definitely be cliché, as we could all see it coming. Suffering is one thing in storytelling, death is another.
Thankfully I think Telltale actually values our opinions, but apparently you don't think that highly of them. They're not opposed to change considering they have a feedback tag.
Very sorry about that. I thought it was a little odd that only a few forums had the Staff AMA tag, lol.
What are you talking about? This isn't a theory or explanation, so no, I don't think so. It's worthy of its own Topic.
That would be ridiculous, so hopefully not.
What's dull is a Cliché that stands the test of time. If we don't have the option to at least save Clem and AJ, THAT would be dull.
And what makes the ending different? A lot. Season 1 was kind of like it's own game, where the main Character dies, and since Season 1 it's also kind of been like it's own game with Clem as main Character, and if Clem were to die, as I said, it would turn me and many others off of TWD and Telltale. A Cliché and Dull ending would be a repeat of Season 1. If it were to end like Season 1 we could see it since Season 2.
And folks leaving kills communities, usually as an indirect result of something development-wise. I don't want that to happen, and like I said I've seen it happen. I like this community and I like that the developers are actually involved in it. That's why I left this feedback in the first place, because I know it has a chance of actually being seen.
Give me an option to sacrifice AJ to Satan atleast..
Honestly, what is considered cliched is really subjective here in this context. Either of us could just call something cliched because of our own personal experiences with stories and movies. Mine just happens to polarize yours. And to tell you the truth, I wouldn't have seen it coming, Clementine's death. It's too risky a business move, and it would take some serious cojones for Telltale to execute their money-making mascot. That being said, being unpredictable was not the reason I felt Clem needed to die. Like I said, if she lives, she would just be trapped in perpetual suffering, constantly losing the next loved one and the next one. Unless the entire Earth is magically cleanse of Walkers and this apocalypse is no more, I just think a happy ending is naive and illogical. Doesn't make a lick of sense.
Lord of the Rings has plenty of suffering, so yes, I think Kurt's words do hold some weight in this context. He never said death - you and I did due to the context of this discussion - he said suffering.
Who says she'd walk off? Ericsons is capable of providing an actual home for both Clementine and AJ.
Stereotyped as an end
if they don't have multiple endings, including one where clem dies or not then its not a good game
If she gets killed of, its cliche. But if she lives, its also cliche.
Eventually everyone's luck runs out.
There will be several ends, it's a certainty
I decided to copy and paste a comment I made in a similar discussion. It is a bit of a long read so prepare yourselves:
In my opinion I don't think Clementine will die. I don't have any proof as to why she won't die but the reasons behind my view is this:
Clementine is the company mascot for Telltale Games, just like Mario is for Nintendo and Sonic to SEGA. The Company Mascot is pretty much the reason behind said Company's success and status in the Industry. For Telltale to go and kill their Company Mascot who they pretty much owe their success to (No offense Telltale Staff) would be disrespectful to the franchise and disrespectful to Clementine herself (Or so I think). The Walking Dead Season One was the beginning of a new Era for Telltale, it opened the door to many more games which received critical acclaim using the same formula as The Walking Dead Season One (The Wolf Among Us, Tales From The Borderlands and The Walking Dead Season Two are prime examples) And with The Final Season drawing the conclusion of the story we first encountered and immediately fell in love with back in 2012 as well as being the End of an Era for Telltale Games, it would make perfect sense for Telltale to say goodbye to their beloved franchise which propelled them to the top of Interactive Storytelling on good terms.
Clementine's Story is different than any other story in the Zombie Genre/ Walking Dead Franchise. Her Story and her character resembles hope for a bright future in a dark world. Despite the horrors and pain and darkness that are a part of the world of The Walking Dead Clementine is the light of hope and the future of The Walking Dead universe. Adults knew of a world before the Walkers and despite Clementine also living before the Apocalypse she has spent the majority of her life surviving in this new world. To me it would be good to end the Series in a way that sets up the new generation preparing for life in this world. Clementine could lead that or at the very least be a prime example of how children will cope in the future of The Walking Dead.
Too much is at stake in The Final Season. Clementine has encountered countless people on her journey. Many of which fought to protect her and keep her safe. They saw her as the future of Humanity, Someone who is capable of leading people out of the apocalypse, Someone who could potentially bring things back to normal. To kill a character who experienced such tremendous loss and pain by seeing those who cared about her die all around her would leave those sacrifices in vain. Clementine deserves a happy ending and despite The Walking Dead being full of pain and heartache it also has heartwarming and happy moments too. To have a "Happy" Ending would not be a terrible thing nor a poor representation of The Walking Dead brand or Universe
Season One was amazing and it only had one ending. Sure it had different variations but Lee still died and Clementine still left him. If The Final Season has one ending then it is not necessarily bad or make the game terrible
Exactly! Just because a game doesn't have multiple endings, that doesnt make it bad.
Season 1, arguably, was the BEST season even though the others had multiple endings.
The problem with those multiple endings was the fact that they didn't even matter (Much like the entire franchise). Clem is still alone in the end regardless. Season 2, didn't matter of you went with Kenny or Jane or even stayed at Wellington because in the end both Kenny and Jane die and Wellington gets raided. So in a way, everyone the same result.
Season 3, Clem still leaves Richmond even though you either save Kate, Gabe, or both.
Multiple endings didn't mean nothing because the result is the same so ultimately its useless.
Season 1 had one ending but that ending felt more meaningful and a huge impact. The multiple endings didn't really have a impact the if you really look closely at them
Telltale have stated multiple times that it is The Final Season, the end of Clementine's story. She will not appear in future Walking Dead games if Telltale does decide to revisit the franchise. I can see the appeal in having multiple endings as it gives everyone a unique ending to the Story.
You said that the choices at the end of particular Seasons didn't ultimately matter, but with this being The Final Season, the endings and choices WILL matter.
I would prefer a singular ending as the whole franchise had a single beginning. To me it should conclude in one way.
Man, Dylan you always say stuff that I completely agree with.
Thank You
I know my opinion isn't the most valued or treasured here on the forums but it is good to see that there are people who can see where I am coming from and understand what I am trying to say 
Hey no problem! Just really liking your view on things!
That's personally what I want. A single ending much like the first one.
Many people believe that if the Season had one ending then its bad. To me just because it has one ending that doesn't make it bad. If anything I think its better than have multiple ending. (I'm not saying that Multiple endings are bad)
Season 1 had one ending but was it bad? No and arguably that was the best Season (S4 is still new so I can't say too much about it)
Yeah exactly.
I don't really care if there are multiple endings or not, but I'd prefer a singular ending where they didn't cliché it, and yes, it is a cliché if they kill her off, not vice versa. You have to take into account the fact that Lee was raising Clem and now Clem is raising AJ. The amount of predictability of a main character death ending is very high. That among other things is what would make a Clementine death ending Cliché.
You mean as Cliche as Clementine walking off like she's done in three game endings already?
For some it wouldn't be a turn off myself included. Maybe being that attached to a fictional character as you would a real living person is not sounding psychologically healthy. If TTG WANTS to kill her off then that should be up to them likewise if they wanted to let her live. Just in my opinion letting her live has been seen time and again already. Versus once with a different person named Lee Everett. Although perhaps an in game player vote could be introduced for the first time ever to decide Clementine's fate in the penultimate episode. Because multiple endings are often better served when you have more installments following the multiple endings. Ten years from now when fans look back they'll more quickly forget which ending they chose than forget a single classical ending like season one. Also multiple endings open up long term arguments for two or even three opposing sides, just like season two did on which ending was "canon" or "better".
It's possible that....
Multiple endings= confusion/arguments
Alive endings= Unknown character fates..seeds for sequels and reappearances in spite of the book finally closing on this protagonist.
Dead endings= No pun intended offer up acceptance/closure and the moving on with real personal life. Imagine if Lee was still alive out there. Folks would endlessly speculate on his return.
As I've explained you're wrongly using the word attached here, and my liking Clementine isn't the sole reason for this thread.
And Clementine has a continuous story, Lee didn't. If the main character died every season it would be ridiculous, therefor it's not Cliché to have her live if it's the end of her continuous series.
As for speculating on people coming back, you're wrong. People still try to speculate that Lee will come back even though we know he's dead. It happens no matter what. And you're acting as if people put this stuff ahead of their real personal life. They generally don't, and I don't know why you insist on inserting that speculation.
And it's not a dead ending either. End of series is end of series. We know it's the end of the series. What you're saying makes no sense. Your train of thought leads to the ridiculous idea that every writer has to kill off their characters so no one will speculate if they will return.
And what makes a game good and iconic is most usually its replay value. People will be less inclined to replay the game if it has a bad ending. Bad endings ruin replay value even if the content is good. So ten years from now if we're lucky we'll be able to replay a Walking Dead where the final season has Clementine survive.
So your "dead" endings are false. An end of series with the main character alive offers closure. As I said, we know it's an end of series.
An ending where Clem is alive would be best for the series and the community.